The Field
by Babyfaced
Summary: He was always there. And lately, so was she. So they were together, even if it was only at the field...


**_The Field_**

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**by**

**Little Kunoichi**

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Ino breathed deeply, asking herself for the millionth time why she had come here. She was lying on the grass on a hill that, because of its view of the endless blue sky and shady trees, was a perfect place for watching clouds. The blonde didn't usually come here, no, that was her lazy teammate, Shikamaru.

Lifting her blue-eyed gaze up, she stared at the clouds, trying to understand _why_ the spiky-haired Jounin found this a relaxing and pleasant hobby, instead of boring and sleep-inducing (which, needless to say, was what she thought of it).

But, she thought with a smirk, maybe that was his reason for staring at those darned white pieces of fluff all day-- sixty-five percent of the time he seemed to be sleeping.

Her facial expression calmed as she looked into the sky, watching the clouds drift lazily by-- they really _did_ remind her of Shikamaru. This gave her a feeling of nostalgia as she wistfully recalled the many times she saw him sprawled on the grass here, lost in thought. He looked so serene at those times she almost forgot that in real life he was grumpy, frustrating...

...Sweet, considerate, thoughtful, and somehow cute in a way that she couldn't quite place her finger on.

She sighed. This whole field smelled like him-- or was it the other way around? It probably came from lying around here almost twenty-four seven-- except when she tried to force him to do things with her or for her. Sometimes she felt guilty about the way she treated him (and Chouji, for that matter), and often wondered why he put up with it. His excuse was that it was too troublesome to argue with her, but if he did he could have avoided a lot more trouble. She... appreciated it, even though she'd never admit it out loud.

She sorely missed how they used to hang out. Shikamaru, Chouji, and she. Ever since Shikamaru had become a Jounin (quite far ahead of the pack) and Chouji had concentrated more on learning his family's jutsus, she had seen little of either.

She missed how the two used to play Shogi and Go (the larger boy rarely won).

She even missed how the lazy boy used to call her troublesome when she tried to make him do something that didn't involve looking at clouds, sleeping, or playing Japanese board games.

Ino closed her eyes, savoring the peace and quiet as the cool breeze swept over the field, causing her loose strands of hair to tickle her face. She laughed silently as she imagined Shikamaru totally bewildered at the thought that the blonde would actually be _savoring the peace and quiet_. She wasn't really one to be associated with either.

Hell... she missed _him_.

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Shikamaru, upon returning from his mission (B-ranked! he thought grumpily), headed straight for his favorite cloudgazing field after visiting his family and friends, assuring them he was fine (what were they worried about? his skill had progressed so far that even B-ranked missions weren't that hard). It was strange, however, that he couldn't seem to find Ino.

Imagine his surprise when he found her asleep in his favorite cloud watching spot.

He quirked an eyebrow as he observed her... ah... peaceful slumber. It was quite hard for him to imagine her _peaceful_, but when faced with actual living proof...

He stared at her serene face and felt an unexplainable pull at his heart strings... if he had had any, that is.

Sighing, he lay down beside her. Instead of gazing at the clouds, however, he stared at her. Without the usual crease in her brow, or the frown on her lips (which, he noticed, looked soft and pink and...) she looked almost...

And that was when she woke with a start and sat up.

"Shika?" she said, pushing the loose hairs from her face.

"What?" He said, his head now facing the sky. No need for her to see the blush on his face.

She sighed, lying back down. She mimicked his position, putting her interlaced fingers behind her head, "Back from your mission, huh?" she asked, staring at the almost setting sun. The light washed over them, giving everything an orange glow.

"Hn."

They lay in silence for a while, the sun sinking lower and lower into the ground as they remained still for quite some time.

And then, to Shikamaru's total and complete surprise, Ino moved closer and practically curled herself up against him, draping an arm across him and burying her face in his chest. She murmured, "I missed you..."

He blushed deeply, and tried to control his breathing and the odd fluttering inside his chest. He hesitantly placed an arm around her and buried his own face in her golden locks. She smelled faintly of fresh flowers, and strangely, of this very field. It indicated she had been here for quite a time. Probably longer then he would have expected. And it gave him a very, very weird feeling.

"I... I missed you too."

**end**


End file.
